Board of Comm'rs of Knox County v. Jones

• Decision Date: 26 November 1855
• Citation: 7 Ind. 2
• Parties: The Board of Commissioners of Knox County v. Jones
• Court: Indiana Supreme Court

7 Ind. 2

The Board of Commissioners of Knox County v. Jones

Supreme Court of Indiana

November 26, 1855

From the Knox Court of Common Pleas.

The judgment is reversed with costs. Cause remanded, with instructions to dismiss the suit.

S Judah for appellants.

B. M Thomas for appellee.

OPINION

Perkins J.

Suit by Jones against the board of commissioners of Knox county, to recover the sum of 16 dollars, alleged to be due for keeping one O'Brien, a pauper. On the trial of the cause upon appeal in the Court of Common Pleas, "it was proved," says the bill of exceptions, "that O'Brien was a pauper, who had been in the county poor-house of Knox county more than one year previous to the time of his death, and that he went, about the day of January, from the said poor-house to the house of the plaintiff, Jones, in Vincennes; that a short time after, he was taken sick, while at the house of the plaintiff, and remained there, so being sick, about five days, when notice was given by plaintiff to the witness, Dork, who was keeper of the poor-house, of the sickness of O'Brien, &c.; that on the third day after, the said keeper took O'Brien from the house of plaintiff to the poor-house, where, soon after, he died. It was further proved that H. Decker was one of the township trustees of Vincennes township, and, as such, made and delivered to the plaintiff a certificate as follows:

'Vincennes, 10th day of March, 1854. I hereby certify that I authorized E. M. Jones to keep Thomas O'Brien during his last illness. H. Decker, T. V. T.'

"It was further proved that plaintiff presented his account and claim for an allowance for keeping said O'Brien, being the same claim filed as the cause of action in this suit, to the defendants for allowance, and that defendants refused to make such allowance, and afterwards did allow to the said keeper of the poor-house his bill for the board of said pauper up to the time of his death, and including the time he was at the house of the plaintiff. It was proved that 2 dollars per day was a reasonable price for keeping said O'Brien at plaintiff's house, and there was evidence as follows: that at the time of the contest before the commissioners about the plaintiff's claim, it was said in the presence and hearing of plaintiff, that plaintiff had sent to the poor-house for O'Brien to come and help kill his hogs, to which he replied, and denied that he had sent for O'Brien, and said he did not want him to help kill his hogs, but wanted him to cut up and salt his pork. There was evidence that plaintiff had been the keeper of the poor-house preceding the present keeper, Dork, and as such had had charge of the paupers; and there was some proof that a boy, a witness for defendants, went to the poor-house and told O'Brien that Jones was about to kill his hogs; that the next afternoon O'Brien went to Jones's; but there was no proof that plaintiff either authorized or knew of the message. It was proved that O'Brien told the boy to let him know when...